Wednesday, January 02, 2013

How to Make Ice Lanterns

I made ice lanterns this past weekend with plans to light them on New Year's Eve. Unfortunately it wasn't cold enough, so I put them out this evening. They were simple to make and I love the beautiful swirls created by the addition of food coloring.

Would you like to make your own? Clear some space in your freezer and gather your supplies....

Something to weigh the cups down so they don't float (I used silverware)

Water

Food coloring

Directions

Fill each container with 1 - 2 inches of water. Add food coloring to get desired shade, place plastic cup in center and weigh down, then freeze. Add a couple more inches of water + food coloring and freeze. Repeat until you reach the top, but make sure you leave about 1/2 inch of cup above the ice so you have something to grab when you are ready to pull it out. If the temperature is consistently below freezing where you live, you can also freeze your lantern outdoors.

To unmold the lantern, pour hot water into the cup and twist to release it. Run hot water over the exterior of the container to slightly melt the ice. Take the lantern outside and carefully unmold it. Place a votive candle inside and enjoy!

These are absolutely beautiful. What a wonderful way to line a walkway. I have a link party called Wednesdays Adorned From Above Blog Hop and would love to have you share this and any other posts with everyone. It runs from Wednesday through midnight Sunday. Here is the link to the party.http://www.adornedfromabove.com/2013/01/week-in-review-and-wednesdays-adorned.htmlDebi @ Adorned From Above

I've not seen these done with food coloring, so neat! Thanks for linking up at DIY Thrifty Thursday...You've been featured! Drop by this week and grab an "I was featured" button and share anymore amazing ideas you have.

What a great practically free project! I would love for you to come link up at my weekly linky party Thrifty to Nifty Thursdays at A Jennuine Life. I'm working with a couple of bigger bloggers to feature great projects, so I'm hoping to bring fabulous exposure for participants! http://ajennuinelife.blogspot.com/2013/01/thrifty-to-nifty-thursdays-2.html

These look so cool!!! What a fun idea!! Thanks for sharing them with us at Fancy This Fridays! We featured your ice lanterns today! http://www.trulylovelyblog.net/2013/01/fancy-this-fridays-109-and-features/

We love this! We are featuring your post in our linky party on Share it Saturday. We will also be sharing with our followers on FB. You can check it out here https://www.facebook.com/pages/Sugar-Aunts/406711342711382?ref=hl

Thanks for the idea! We tried it and I blogged about it today and linked up to this page too! Please come check out my post: http://savegreenbeinggreen.blogspot.com/2013/03/kids-crafts-inspired-from-pinterest.html

Another way to make these (a bit easier and using fewer items) is by making waterballoons and putting them in the freezer for 24 hours. You peel away the balloon and cut the top of the sphere off with a knife warmed in hot water, and you'll find that the walls will be frozen about 1" to 1 1/2" thick, but the center will still be water which you pour out, leaving a hollow for a votive. I surprised my neighbor by lining her walkway right before a Christmas party that she gave at her home for the neighborhood. Adding food coloring next time I make these sounds like a great idea - I will definitely be trying it :D

Hi, I'm Kirstin. Welcome to Craftiments, a creative DIY blog about my experiments in sewing and crafts. I can't wait to hear from you! You may send your questions and comments to kirstin {at} craftiments {dot} com.